Chapter 20 Welcome to the Japanese Kabuki Troupe

The Japanese kabuki troupe has arrived in Beijing and is about to meet the Chinese audience. This is a major event in the cultural exchanges between China and Japan. It will help the people of the two countries to understand each other better and enhance their Friendship will play a big role.As a Chinese literary and art worker who once lived in Japan and watched Kabuki, I would like to extend my heartfelt welcome! I know very little about Japanese kabuki, which is loved by the Japanese people and has a history of more than three hundred years.I have seen Kabuki performances in Japan only three or four times, but it has already deeply attracted me.It's like looking at a pot of unknown strange flowers, a famous painting by an unknown author. Although I can't tell their names and origins, I can still say to people who have never seen this potted flower and this painting, To speak in general terms of the touching and pleasant impressions of their color, fragrance and style.

Some people say that Japanese Kabuki is very similar to Chinese Peking Opera.Yes, they are all produced in the folk, with special national forms and styles.Their costumes, props, music and stories in the play are all classical.In terms of performance, it is not a "co-acting of men and women".In China, men and women used to be divided into classes; in Japan, in the founding period of kabuki, it was performed entirely by female actors, and later it was all replaced by male actors. However, Japanese Kabuki is also very different from Chinese Peking Opera: The acting method of Chinese Peking Opera is "singing and acting" by the same actor.Kabuki in Japan is "singers don't dance, dancers don't sing".When an actor is dancing or doing other actions on the stage, there are a few singers in classical costumes sitting beside or behind the stage. They follow the movements of the dancer and sing for him Love affairs are very similar to the chorus in Yue opera, or the accompaniment in Sichuan opera.

The design of the Japanese Kabuki stage is also very unique.In front of the very large and wide stage, a "flower path" stretched out several feet wide, leading directly to the door opposite the theater. In this way, the actor is drawn straight into the middle of the audience.A group of people rushing to the stage from behind the audience in great momentum; or a tragic protagonist walking slowly from the stage, covering his face and bowing his head, and disappearing behind the audience, the effect is very moving. As for the scenery on stage, it is also very good.The pavilions, platforms, buildings, pavilions, and interior layout are lifelike and lifelike. It is a good introduction for those who have never appreciated Japanese architectural art.Even the simplest setting is full of the artistic meaning of the Japanese nation.A long golden screen is painted with snow-covered Mount Fuji, dense green pine trees, or red and smiling cherry blossoms. The atmosphere is very beautiful.

In terms of music for the accompaniment, there are shamisen, fife, zither, gongs and drums, etc. The bands are hidden behind the stage or in front of the stage.The sound of the music is slightly lower than that of Chinese Peking Opera.During the "fighting" in the play, instead of beating gongs and drums, a band member kneels and sits on the left side of the stage, slapping two square-column clappers on the ground. On the stage of Kabuki, there are also people who look like the "check-up" in Chinese Peking Opera—we don’t use them anymore—they wear classical costumes, or all in pure black. Work quietly.

I don't know Japanese, but I can still be affected by it when I watch Kabuki.The performance art of the actors is very high, and the joy, anger, sorrow, and joy are vividly expressed.Especially when performing tragedies, the scene of "sighing and desolation" and "lingering sorrow" won many tears from the audience. I have seen audiences in Kabuki theaters wiping their tears in unison.When the audience saw the highlights, some people cheered loudly. The applause was not always called "good", but they called the actor's name or his family background, which meant to encourage him to "not fall into the family name", Because the vast majority of Japanese kabuki actors are "handed down from generation to generation", just like the "Liyuan family" in China in the past.

The above are just some impressions of Japanese Kabuki in my memory.These impressions are very novel and beautiful until today.I believe that the vast majority of Chinese people, especially literary and art workers, will come to enjoy Japanese Kabuki performances with great excitement.Mutual observation and learning in drama art is of great benefit to promoting cultural and artistic exchanges between our two countries.As for the mutual visits of cultural and art groups, which can increase the deeper sympathy and understanding between the people of the two countries, then I will not say more.

I just repeat: I sincerely welcome the arrival of the Japanese Kabuki Theater!